Grilled Mahi-Mahi with a Mango Butter-Wine Sauce

 

I watched a video from Metropolitan Seafood of this being made and knew I had to try and make it myself. What an excellent meal it turned out to be paired with a Caesar salad and some melon pieces. And Mahi is one of the easiest fish to grill. So good. 

Ingredients for the Mango Lime Butter Sauce:

½ cup chopped fresh mango

½ cup dry white wine - Savaugnon Blanc or Pinot Grigio

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon ginger, peeled and minced

Juice of 2 limes, freshly squeezed

¼ cup Half & Half

½ cup unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Salt and pepper to taste

2 (6-ounce) Mahi-Mahi fillets

2 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

½ teaspoon Herbs de Provence seasoning

Instructions for the Mango Lime Sauce:

To prepare the mango-lime butter, in a small saucepan, combine the chopped mango, wine, sugar, ginger and lime juice. Simmer over medium heat for about 8 minutes, or until it becomes syrupy.

Add the cream and mix well. Remove from the heat and pour into a blender. 

Blend until smooth. Return to the saucepan and simmer over low heat for about 10 minutes. You want the sauce to thicken a little. Add the butter, one piece at a time stirring after each addition until well incorporated. Do not boil the sauce or it will separate.

Instructions for the Fish:

Pat dry the fish and brush with olive oil on both sides. Season with salt, ground black pepper and Herbs de Provence seasoning.

Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium high heat (about 400 to 450 degrees F). Place the fish on the hot grill and cook for about 3-4 minutes on the first side then, flip it and cook for 3-4 minutes or until opaque. Remove from the grill.

Serve the fish with the mango butter-wine sauce and a side of brown basmati rice. 💖

Notes:

To prevent the fish from sticking to the grill, make sure your grill grates are clean and always preheat the grill to high heat.

Make sure you pat dry the fish. Extra moisture will prevent the fish from getting charred grill marks.

If you would like to make the sauce ahead of time, keep it warm for a couple of hours in a small thermos.

You may have extra sauce left over but trust me, it's so good you will want to drink it with a straw!

Mahi-Mahi Moqueca

 

Moqueca is a classic Brazilian dish typically made with fish or shrimp cooked in a fragrant sauce of coconut milk along with tomatoes, onions, garlic, cilantro, and bell peppers. This version is based on video post by Mark Drabich owner of Metropolitan Seafood. Like all his entertaining videos he made this dish so appealing that I had to make it myself. The only change I made to his original recipe was to use several different varieties of heirloom peppers, both hot and sweet, from our own garden rather than the jalapeno. This turned out to be one of the best fish dishes I have ever had. The aroma and taste flavors were amazing. 

For the Spice Mix:

 1 teaspoon ground cumin

 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

 1 teaspoon turmeric

 1 teaspoon ground coriander

 ½ teaspoon garlic powder

 1 teaspoon salt

 ½ teaspoon pepper

 

For the Mahi:

 4 Mah-Mahi fillets, 6 to 8 ounces each, skinned; you could also use Grouper, Halibut or Tilefish; something firm

 3  tablespoons of olive oil, divided

 1  medium onion, chopped

 1  jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped (I used a combination of sweet Jimmy Nardello, sweet Marconi, hot Buena Mulata, hot Calabrese and sweet Habanada peppers)

 1 tablespoon of finely grated ginger

 4 cloves of garlic, crushed and minced

 10 grape tomatoes chopped

 The finely grated zest of 1 lemon plus the juice

 1 14-ounce can unsweetened coconut milk

 ¼ cup of fresh chopped cilantro; Don’t like Cilantro? Use parsley, but I might judge you.

 Rice for serving

 Preparation

In a small bowl, combine all of the ingredients for the Spice Mix.

Place the Mahi on a plate or baking sheet, pat dry with paper towels, and season both sides with the spice mix; cover the fish with plastic wrap and let it marinate at room temperature for 15 to 20 minutes.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, sear the mahi fillets (flesh side down first) for 4 minutes per side, trying to achieve a nice browned color. Transfer the fish to a plate. 

Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil to the skillet and turn the flame down to medium. Add the onion, jalapeno pepper, ginger, garlic, and cook until the onion has softened and is translucent; about 5 minutes. 

Add the tomatoes, lemon zest, lemon juice, and season with a bit of salt and pepper. Cook for 5 more minutes until the tomatoes soften.

Stir in the coconut milk and simmer until the sauce thickens, for another 5 minutes.

Bring the Mahi fillet back to the skillet and cover for 5-6 minutes or until the fish is just opaque when fork tested. 

To serve, transfer the dish to a serving platter and garnish with the chopped cilantro.